Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the UK armed forces will integrate command and control systems for the proposed Multinational Force in Ukraine.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Multinational Force Ukraine (MNFU) has established a 3-star multinational operational headquarters in Paris, led by the UK and France.
The operational headquarters oversees all tactical and operational arrangements. Plans have also been established for a future coordination cell in Kyiv which will be set up when the force deploys. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct coordination with the MNFU joint operations staff.
Planning continues at pace, but we will not be drawn into further details of any future UK Armed Forces deployment, including its control and command systems, due to the risk to operational security.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, who will lead the joint operations staff responsible for the strict control and management of the proposed Multinational Force.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Multinational Force Ukraine (MNFU) will include a 3-star multinational operational HQ in Paris, led by the UK and France, to oversee all tactical and operational arrangements. Plans have also been established for a future coordination cell in Kyiv which will be set up when the force deploys. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct coordination with the MNFU joint operations staff.
Planning continues at pace, but we will not be drawn into further details of any future UK Armed Forces deployment, including its control systems, due to the risk to operational security.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will publish the members of the new negotiating group.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
As stated in the Declaration of Intent, a negotiating group will be established to ensure the development and conclusion of an international agreement to the Multinational Force on the territory of Ukraine. With Ukraine, this will include the UK, France and where appropriate other contributing nations to the Multinational Force.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, whether the infrastructure protected by the proposed Multinational Force in Ukraine will be (a) civil and (b) military.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Multinational Force Ukraine will strengthen Ukraine’s path to peace and stability, aiding the protection of both civil and military infrastructure by securing its skies, supporting safer seas, and regenerating the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many AI contracts have been awarded by his Department since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department can confirm that from 5 July 2024, two AI contracts have been awarded. However, many more contracts, not classified as AI will contain elements of AI as part of a contemporary service offer.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, what steps he will take to promote the participation of other nations in the Multinational Force.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
As stated in the Declaration of Intent, signatories will promote the participation of other nations in the Multinational Force Ukraine, including through the means of accession provided for in the international agreement and such other arrangements as are necessary.
The Secretary of State for Defence has regular engagement with Ukraine, France and other partners on Ukraine-related security in the event of a cessation of hostilities, including ongoing discussions on national contributions to the Multinational Force.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the deployment of the armed forces of the UK will strengthen the defence-industrial potential of Ukraine.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK contributes significantly to Ukraine's defence industrial resilience through Task Force HIRST and Programme LYRA. A key strength of the UK's approach lies in our ability to consistently support Ukraine by bringing together our industrial base and technologists to partner with Ukrainian companies, establishing new joint ventures.
The deployment of a Multinational Force to Ukraine will further reinforce our support and provide the right environment to exploit and rapidly scale the significant work the UK has already done.
We will continue to use UK and international funding and the interest on immobilised Russian assets to support Ukrainian and UK industrial collaboration and continue to work with our Ukrainian partners to reduce frictions and increase materiel production.
This will build on the UK's successes under HIRST: trade missions, megaprojects, equipment support; and leverage the evolution of our support under the 100 Year Partnership, through the sharing of battlefield technology and joint capability development under Programme LYRA.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, whether he plans to increase the budget allocated to strengthening the defence-industrial potential of Ukraine.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK contributes significantly to Ukraine's defence industrial resilience through Task Force HIRST and Programme LYRA. A key strength of the UK's approach lies in our ability to consistently support Ukraine by bringing together our industrial base and technologists to partner with Ukrainian companies, establishing new joint ventures.
The deployment of a Multinational Force to Ukraine will further reinforce our support and provide the right environment to exploit and rapidly scale the significant work the UK has already done.
We will continue to use UK and international funding and the interest on immobilised Russian assets to support Ukrainian and UK industrial collaboration and continue to work with our Ukrainian partners to reduce frictions and increase materiel production.
This will build on the UK's successes under HIRST: trade missions, megaprojects, equipment support; and leverage the evolution of our support under the 100 Year Partnership, through the sharing of battlefield technology and joint capability development under Programme LYRA.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the deployment of the armed forces of the United Kingdom will (a) restore, (b) regenerate and (c) train the (i) security and (ii) defence forces of Ukraine.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Multinational Force Ukraine will strengthen Ukraine's path to peace and stability, securing its skies, supporting safer seas, and regenerating its own forces. The multinational force is expected to regenerate land forces by providing logistic, armament and training experts to assist with the regeneration and reconstitution of Ukraine's land forces.
Post cessation of hostilities, the Multinational Force for Ukraine will be the visible and tangible international support for Ukraine's return to peace, bolstering Ukraine's ability to restore security and stability. The regeneration of Ukraine's own forces will deter and defend against future Russian aggression, ensuring the country is able to rebuild a thriving economy, attract international investment and build a pathway to closer Euro-Atlantic integration.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled UK to develop new deep strike ballistic missile for Ukraine, published on 11 January 2026, how many and what proportion of the missiles will be manufactured in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The deadline to receive Nightfall development proposals is the 9 February 2026, with development contract(s) aimed to be awarded in March 2026. The Department aims to maximise the UK industrial content of these development contract(s).